Your house is a great investment. You need to do everything you can to add to its value and protect it from damage. You need to do some preventive measures so that you do not find yourself in a situation where you need to spend a lot of money just to maintain (not even to add) its present value.
Hurricanes are potentially one of the biggest threats to your home. Even in the best case scenario, hurricanes bring to your house continuous water exposure that can potentially result to the problem of water damage to the outside and sometimes inside of your home.
Having a hurricane shutter can help you protect your vulnerable windows during strong winds and storms. It can also make sure that the water and winds stays outside of your house.
There are a lot of kinds of hurricane shutters. The type that you will choose will depend on your needs and your situation (budget, house design, and expected storm strength).
If your situation is low budget and no expectations with maintaining or adding to the beauty of your house, what I would recommend is the storm panel hurricane shutters. They are strong solid detachable panels that you only put on your windows when you expect a potentially damaging strong storm to come in. When not in use, you will need to store then in your garage, attic or basement. Their price ranges from six to eight dollars per square foot.
If you have a moderate budget, want to add to your home’s beauty and need protection from strong storms, then I would suggest board-n-batten exterior shutters. Board-n-batten shutters, unlike interior plantation shutters, are made of strong solid boards that are secured together by a horizontal batten. They can also add a rustic feel to your home’s exterior.
The ultimate hurricane shutter is a roll down shutter. They are very expensive. But, with the use of a centralized control, roll down shutters can give your house a lock down security during hurricanes.
photo credit: Bob B. Brown